Blended Polygon Search for Geographic Relevance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current search engines often fail to prioritize search results based on geographic characteristics that are most relevant to users, such as low crime areas or good school districts, leading to less relevant results being promoted over more relevant ones.
Innovation Solution
A blended polygon search process that modifies entity scores based on geographic characteristics, using polygons from third-party providers to enhance search result rankings by identifying entities within specific geographic regions defined by these characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If search engines prioritize results based on keyword occurrences and similarity, then search results are responsive to query parameters, but geographic relevance is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple scoring dimensions including keyword matching, similarity metrics, and geographic characteristic scoring into a unified ranking system. The blended score integrates both query parameter responsiveness and geographic relevance, resolving the contradiction by merging previously separate evaluation criteria into a comprehensive ranking mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The search engine system performs multiple functions simultaneously: it evaluates keyword occurrences, calculates similarity metrics, assesses geographic characteristics, and integrates these into a unified ranking. This multi-functional approach allows the system to maintain query parameter matching while simultaneously incorporating geographic relevance without requiring separate systems.
2Productivity
If search engines return results based on keyword correlation, then query responsiveness is improved, but geographic area relevance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces geographic characteristic scores as an additional parameter in the ranking function. By changing the parameter set from solely keyword-based metrics to include geographic attributes, the system maintains query response efficiency while improving geographic area relevance through the expanded parameter framework.
3Device complexity
If search results are ranked by initial entity scores, then processing is simple, but geographic characteristics are not considered
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary calculation of geographic characteristic scores and weights before the final ranking process. By pre-computing geographic relevance metrics and integrating them into the scoring function in advance, the system maintains relatively simple processing while incorporating geographic characteristics, avoiding complex real-time calculations during query execution.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage medium, for performing a blend polygon search. In one aspect, the method may include receiving one or more search parameters. Additional actions may include obtaining two or more sets of data that each represent a respective geographic area, the two or more sets of data including at least one set of data that is provided by a third party geographic data set provider, defining a particular geographic area to search based at least on the two or more sets of data that each represent a respective geographic area, identifying one or more entities that (i) are indicated as responsive to one or more of the search parameters, and (ii) are associated with the particular geographic area, and providing a representation of the entities for output.